Man named Noel arrested for climbing public Christmas tree

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — A man named Noel, who climbed the city's public Christmas tree Wednesday, was arrested after yelling incoherently and attempting to unfurl a banner.

Noel Delgado, 42, of New Haven, was charged with misdemeanor breach of peace after police talked him out of the tree.

Lt. Jeff Hoffman of the New Haven Police said Delgado was found climbing the tree shortly before noon ET.

“He was yelling kind of indecipherably about causes, but none of it really connected,” Hoffman said.

Delgado had two banners with him, but the words on them weren't visible because they had become tangled in the tree.

Police cut power to tree lights and kept people away as the incident played out. The tree, which sits near the center of the Green, had its nearly 30,000 LED lights lit on Dec. 5.

Delgado decided to make his way down the tree around 12:30 p.m., and police drove him from the snowy Green in a police cruiser. Delgado continued to yell as he was led away.

Delgado refused medical treatment, Hoffman said. According to court records, Delgado has a criminal history of minor arrests, and a felony charge of conspiracy to possess and sell drugs stemming from an April 2010 arrest.

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